RCL - Distilled Water?

[ParrotHeadCruiser1]

I have a CPAP machine.  Can I bring my distilled water onboard in my luggage and/or does the cruise line offer distilled water for guests at no charge?

[Ashland]

3 hours ago, ParrotHeadCruiser1 said:

I have a CPAP machine.  Can I bring my distilled water onboard in my luggage and/or does the cruise line offer distilled water for guests at no charge?

RCI will provide you with a new unopened gallon jug of distilled water and an extension cord if needed and is complimentary. Just add this request to your booking or call special needs (866) 592-7225.

You can also just request this from your cabin steward when you arrive to your cabin. Don't be concerned with this at all..many request these. 

[ParrotHeadCruiser1]

Thanks so much!!!!

[soremekun]

I use a CPAP machine.  The water from the bathroom sink (on cruise ships) works great with the CPAP machine.

[Coralc]

26 minutes ago, soremekun said:

I use a CPAP machine.  The water from the bathroom sink (on cruise ships) works great with the CPAP machine.

That is what my friend's physician told her about ship water and her CPAP. It is essentially already distilled water. 

[VernRDH]

Have never had a problem getting distilled water from cabin steward. Or we have asked concierge in D lounge, always been delivered.

[Tree_skier]

Along with the phone number that @Ashland has listed you can also just submit a for from here...

 

https://www.royalcaribbean.com/resources/guest-special-needs

 

Or as has already been mentioned you can wait to get on board and request it from cabin attendant. 

 

I usually submit the form.  about 50% of the time it is in my cabin when I arrive.  When it's not I just mention it to the cabin attendant before dinner on Day 1 and it is there in the evening.

[nhraformula00]

All of the water on the ship is generated from the ship from a process called reverse osmosis. It is 100 % pure with no contaminates.

[shellunderwater]

3 minutes ago, Tree_skier said:

Along with the phone number that @Ashland has listed you can also just submit a for from here...

 

https://www.royalcaribbean.com/resources/guest-special-needs

 

Or as has already been mentioned you can wait to get on board and request it from cabin attendant. 

 

I usually submit the form.  about 50% of the time it is in my cabin when I arrive.  When it's not I just mention it to the cabin attendant before dinner on Day 1 and it is there in the evening.

This answer here...

 

OP, this is very common.  Cabin attendant is happy to do it, even if it isn't there when you get to your room.  Not a big deal.  

 

No need to stress on this.

 

 

[Tree_skier]

2 minutes ago, shellunderwater said:

This answer here...

 

OP, this is very common.  Cabin attendant is happy to do it, even if it isn't there when you get to your room.  Not a big deal.  

 

No need to stress on this.

 

 

One thing I forgot to mention. Depending on the ship you may or may not need an extension cord...  Check YouTube for video's of your prospective cabin to determine if you will need an extension cord. Plug locations vary by ship and cabin type.

Edited January 3, 2023 by Tree_skier

[jcl410]

1 hour ago, nhraformula00 said:

All of the water on the ship is generated from the ship from a process called reverse osmosis. It is 100 % pure with no contaminates.

 

This is not always true.... At some ports, I have seen Royal Caribbean ships hook up to the water supply on the dock and take on water.... 

 

The rest of the water is either from reverse osmosis,or a flash evaporator. The unknown issue I have is how free of debris the lines are from the tanks to the faucet.

 

Aloha,

 

John 

[crzndeb]

Although most of my cruises are 10+ days, when I go on 7 days cruises, I always feel like I waste so much distilled water, so I just use cabin sink water.

[nolegirl01]

I took a water bottle with distilled water on my carry-on and told the TSA person that it was for my medical device and she just waved it through lol  🤷‍♀️

[Ret MP]

Needed or not, we get the extension cord.  It can come in handy.  My daughter and son-in-law brough Christmas lights on one of our cruises and the extension cord came in handy for that.  Our cabin was nicely decorated.  BTW, we did ask if there was a shortage of extension cords or if anyone with a medical issue needed it.  

[JsMom2]

Please let them know in advance that you will be bringing a cpap.  The room attendant will provide a jug of distilled water and extension cord.  Yes you can request from him onboard, but turnaround day is busy enough. 
 

No need to bypass the room attendant and involve the D (or suite) concierge!

[Tinascratch]

I am currently on Navigator of the Seas. I noted in advance that I would need distilled water. I was brought an unopened gallon of Pure Life brand purified water.

 

This is not distilled water.

 

It's got minerals ADDED to it (just as the ship's distilled tap water does), which is the opposite of what you want for a machine.

 

I've talked to Guest Services twice and was finally told that this is the only water they have. 

 

I'm glad that people have been able to get distilled, but that's not what I'm experiencing. 

[chengkp75]

5 hours ago, Tinascratch said:

I am currently on Navigator of the Seas. I noted in advance that I would need distilled water. I was brought an unopened gallon of Pure Life brand purified water.

 

This is not distilled water.

 

It's got minerals ADDED to it (just as the ship's distilled tap water does), which is the opposite of what you want for a machine.

 

I've talked to Guest Services twice and was finally told that this is the only water they have. 

 

I'm glad that people have been able to get distilled, but that's not what I'm experiencing. 

Ask Guest Services to take the gallon jug to engineering, and have them fill it directly from the evaporator, and you  will have pure distilled water.  We got this request lots of times when I worked for NCL, before the use of CPAPs became widespread, and the lines did not regularly stock distilled water.

 

Also, while I agree that the Pure Life water is not recommended for a CPAP, the amount of calcium carbonate (the ingredient in Tums) which is the only thing added to the distilled water that is made onboard is so low as to not really matter.  Take the tap water, fill a pitcher, leave it set open for several hours to let the chlorine dissipate, and the water will be fine for a CPAP for the few days you are on cruise.

[Tinascratch]

Thank you, @chengkp75, that is extremely helpful!

[Scottdalfonso]

On 1/2/2023 at 9:42 PM, jcl410 said:

 

This is not always true.... At some ports, I have seen Royal Caribbean ships hook up to the water supply on the dock and take on water.... 

 

The rest of the water is either from reverse osmosis,or a flash evaporator. The unknown issue I have is how free of debris the lines are from the tanks to the faucet.

 

Aloha,

 

John 

Any water it is bringing on from a port is most likely non-potable water which is used for Laundry,  cleaning, filling pools, and most commonly Ballast for weight distribution. Its very unlikely that it is being used as drinking or showering water being distributed to the rooms or galleys 

[chengkp75]

8 minutes ago, Scottdalfonso said:

Any water it is bringing on from a port is most likely non-potable water which is used for Laundry,  cleaning, filling pools, and most commonly Ballast for weight distribution. Its very unlikely that it is being used as drinking or showering water being distributed to the rooms or galleys 

That is not correct.  With the exception of the ship's main laundry, all water used on the ship is the same, potable water, whether for drinking, showering, galleys, pools, and deck, hull, and balcony cleaning.  They would no more pay for fresh water for ballast than they would give you a free cruise.  Sea water is ballast.  The exception I mention is that the ship's main laundry uses condensate from the AC system to wash.

 

Nearly every cruise ship takes on potable water in port at some time or another.  Many times the itinerary does not allow for enough time at sea to make enough water to cover the usage over the cruise, so the balance is loaded in port.  The actual hydrant used to load water has to have a water quality test done within 30 days (not just the general municipal system test), and there has to be residual chlorine present.  The hoses are used strictly for loading potable water (even though they are fire hoses), and are sanitized in chlorine before use, and the water loaded is chlorinated before it goes into the ship's storage tanks, and that water cannot be used on the ship until a fecal coliform bacteria test is completed, which takes 18-24 hours.  But, taking on drinking water is done all the time, on any ship.

[Scottdalfonso]

3 hours ago, chengkp75 said:

That is not correct.  With the exception of the ship's main laundry, all water used on the ship is the same, potable water, whether for drinking, showering, galleys, pools, and deck, hull, and balcony cleaning.  They would no more pay for fresh water for ballast than they would give you a free cruise.  Sea water is ballast.  The exception I mention is that the ship's main laundry uses condensate from the AC system to wash.

 

Nearly every cruise ship takes on potable water in port at some time or another.  Many times the itinerary does not allow for enough time at sea to make enough water to cover the usage over the cruise, so the balance is loaded in port.  The actual hydrant used to load water has to have a water quality test done within 30 days (not just the general municipal system test), and there has to be residual chlorine present.  The hoses are used strictly for loading potable water (even though they are fire hoses), and are sanitized in chlorine before use, and the water loaded is chlorinated before it goes into the ship's storage tanks, and that water cannot be used on the ship until a fecal coliform bacteria test is completed, which takes 18-24 hours.  But, taking on drinking water is done all the time, on any ship.

I guess it's different on a cruise ship. I work at a port with cargo ships and they use a large hose with non potable water to fill up. But a truck of actual potable water comes in to stock the living quarters.

[chengkp75]

52 minutes ago, Scottdalfonso said:

I guess it's different on a cruise ship. I work at a port with cargo ships and they use a large hose with non potable water to fill up. But a truck of actual potable water comes in to stock the living quarters.

The hose at the dock is from the municipal supply, but since it is not tested monthly, they cannot call it "potable", and the terminal does not want to spend the money to have it tested monthly.  What the ships use the non-potable, but actually potable, water for is engine room use (called "technical water"), like the fresh water cooling systems for the engines and auxiliary equipment.  The cruise ships also use "technical water" for engine room use, but just like the ship's laundry, their technical water comes from the hundreds of tons of condensate from the AC system.  And, in many cases that truck with "potable" water is actually delivering distilled water for the ship's boiler.

 

I have taken water on cargo ships from many ports, where the dock representatives will tell us the water is "not potable", yet it comes from a city hydrant.  We test the water, chlorinate it, and if it tests fine we have loaded it as potable water for decades.  Cargo ships are not as constrained by public health regulations as cruise ships.

Edited September 12, 2023 by chengkp75

[Seville2Cabo]

1 hour ago, chengkp75 said:

like the fresh water cooling systems for the engines and auxiliary equipment.

Coming from the Petrochemical industry, we had acres of cooling towers to chill our cooling water.  How do you cool the cooling water on a ship.  

 

Always interesting to read your comments.  We did a lot of the same things in our plants, but very differently for different needs (we consumed huge amounts of steam and very little electricity)

[chengkp75]

1 hour ago, Seville2Cabo said:

Coming from the Petrochemical industry, we had acres of cooling towers to chill our cooling water.  How do you cool the cooling water on a ship.  

 

Always interesting to read your comments.  We did a lot of the same things in our plants, but very differently for different needs (we consumed huge amounts of steam and very little electricity)

Sea water.  There are actually three different cooling loops.  The "high temp" fresh water system is in the engine itself (think of your car's cooling system) running at about 75*C.  This is cooled by the "low temp" fresh water system, which also cools everything else in the engine room (engine oil coolers, air compressors, boiler condensers, etc) which runs at about 30*C.  That system is then cooled by sea water, usually max about 25*C, but most ships can handle up to 30*C sea temps (Gulf of Aden, Indian Ocean, those areas).

[Seville2Cabo]

29 minutes ago, chengkp75 said:

Sea water.  There are actually three different cooling loops.  The "high temp" fresh water system is in the engine itself (think of your car's cooling system) running at about 75*C.  This is cooled by the "low temp" fresh water system, which also cools everything else in the engine room (engine oil coolers, air compressors, boiler condensers, etc) which runs at about 30*C.  That system is then cooled by sea water, usually max about 25*C, but most ships can handle up to 30*C sea temps (Gulf of Aden, Indian Ocean, those areas).

So is the sea water a once through?  I would think the delta is enough for a cooling once thru